Biomedical subjects

B B Stagner

Publications and source records attributed to B B Stagner.

22 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed1990

Postnatal development of 2f1-f2 otoacoustic emissions in pigmented rat.

Distortion-product emissions at 2f1-f2 were measured in developing, pigmented rats to determine the characteristics of the functional onset and maturation of these emitted responses. Distortion-product testing was conducted on postnatal days 12, 14, 18, 21, 24, 28, and 51. The geometric-mean frequencies of the primaries were tested at one-half octave intervals, between 4 and 11.3 kHz. No emissions were detected on postnatal day 12; however, by day 14, emissions were measured at geometric-mean frequencies between 5.7 and 11.3 kHz, but not at 4 kHz. By the 18th postnatal day, all animals had measurable emissions at 4, 5, 7, 8, and 11.3 kHz. Both the functional onset and maturation of high- to midfrequency emissions developed before those elicited by lower-frequency primaries. Response/growth or input/output functions for the higher frequencies exhibited 'adult-like' properties that included an increase in maximum amplitude and 'saturation' at high levels of stimulation by the third to fourth postnatal week. Maturation of the lower-frequency responses progressed at a slower rate. These results differ somewhat from those reported previously for the neonatal albino rat. However, the present findings were based upon a wider frequency range of primary tones, lower levels of acoustic stimulation, and a measuring system with a significantly lower noise floor. These results are consistent with documented periods of the anatomical maturation of the rat outer hair-cell system and establish a functional 'baseline' for future studies utilizing agents that damage the developing cochlea.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

PubMed1990

Distortion product emissions in humans. II. Relations to acoustic immittance and stimulus frequency and spontaneous otoacoustic emissions in normally hearing subjects.

Multifrequency and multicomponent evaluations of aural acoustic immittance, including tympanometry and acoustic reflex testing, were performed on 44 normal ears to examine the influence of middle ear functioning on the generation and detection of distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPEs). In the same ears, the prevalence and parametric features of spontaneous and stimulus frequency emissions were also assessed so that their relationship to the detection "thresholds" and amplitudes of corresponding DPEs could be determined. The general outcome was that none of the examined features of acoustic immittance provided an explanation for the discrete, low-amplitude DPE regions observed in about one third of normal ears. Moreover, the presence of typical spontaneous and stimulus frequency emissions in these same "irregular" ears indicated that emission generation and reverse cochlear transmission were also operating normally within these regions of reduced DPEs. Consequently, other, as yet undetermined influences appear to contribute to the DPE variability noted in some ears. Finally, the simultaneous presence of stimulus frequency emissions, but not spontaneous emissions, appeared to reduce the detection "thresholds" and increase the amplitudes of low-frequency DPEs.

Acoustic Impedance Tests↗

PubMed1990

Distortion product emissions in humans. I. Basic properties in normally hearing subjects.

Distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPEs) at the 2f1-f2 frequency were recorded from 44 normal ears in response to equilevel primary tones. Detailed testing included the recording of DPE "audiograms" in 100-Hz steps from 1 to 8 kHz at three primary-tone levels (65, 75, and 85 dB sound pressure level [SPL]). In addition, response-growth or input-output (I/O) functions depicting the relationship of the amplitudes of DPEs to primary-tone levels, ranging from 25 to 85 dB SPL in 5-dB steps, were also tested for 11 frequencies distributed at quarter-octave intervals over the identical frequency range. The average DPE "audiogram" illustrating the frequency response of these emissions demonstrated a bilobed contour having a low-frequency maximum at approximately 1.5 kHz and a high-frequency peak that plateaued at about 5.5 kHz. The two maximum regions were separated by a minimum around 2.5 kHz. Depending on the frequency region, the average I/O functions exhibited detection "thresholds" at 3 dB above the noise floor at primary levels between 35 and 45 dB sound pressure level. The dynamic range of the emitted response between detection "threshold" and maximum amplitude varied over a 40-dB extent of the stimulus-level dimension. Approximately one third of the ears exhibited irregular DPE "audiograms" in which emitted responses were significantly reduced in restricted regions tested by low, medium, or high frequencies. When the 44 ears were separated into two groups representing more-normal and less-normal responses, the irregular "normal" ears demonstrated increased variability, especially in high-frequency regions. Mean age did not explain the differences noted between the two types of normally hearing subjects. However, across ears, DPE amplitudes and "thresholds" for the highest frequencies tested were correlated significantly with age in that the oldest individuals showed higher "thresholds" and lower amplitudes.

Acoustic Impedance Tests↗

PubMed1989

Acoustic distortion products in humans: systematic changes in amplitudes as a function of f2/f1 ratio.

The effects of primary-tone separation on the amplitude of distortion-product emissions (DPEs) at the 2f1-f2 frequency were systematically examined in ten ears of five subjects. All individuals had normal hearing and middle-ear function based upon standard clinical measures. Acoustic-distortion products were elicited at 1, 2.5, and 4 kHz by equilevel primaries at 65, 75, and 85 dB SPL, while f2/f1 ratios were varied in 0.02 increments from 1.01-1.41 (4 kHz), 1.01-1.59 (2.5 kHz), or 1.01-1.79 (1 kHz). A principal outcome reflected in the detailed structure of both average and individual ratio functions was a nonmonotonic change in DPE amplitude as the ratio of f2/f1 increased. Despite the presence of amplitude nonmonotonicities, there was clearly a region of f1 and f2 separation that generated a maximum DPE. The effects of primary-tone separation on DPE amplitudes were systematically related to DPE frequency and primary-tone level. For all three levels of stimulation, the f2/f1 ratio was inversely related to DPE frequency. Thus larger ratios reflecting a greater separation of f1 and f2 were more effective in generating DPEs at 1 kHz rather than at 4 kHz. The optimal ratio for 2.5 kHz fell at an intermediate value. Conversely, acoustic distortion-product amplitude as a function of primary-tone level was directly related to the frequency separation of the primary tones. Regardless of the frequency region of the primary tones, smaller f2/f1 ratios were superior in generating DPEs in response to 65-dB stimuli, whereas larger ratios elicited bigger DPEs with primaries at 75 and 85 dB SPL. Within any specific stimulus-parameter combination, individual variability in DPE amplitude was noted. When all stimulus conditions describing the variations in frequency and level were considered, an f2/f1 ratio of 1.22 was most effective in maximizing DPE amplitude.

Adult↗